Former Sask Party MLA Gary Grewal violated conflict of interest act, commissioner finds

Saskatchewan’s Conflict of Interest Commissioner (COIC) has found that former Saskatchewan Party MLA Gary Grewal violated legislative rules by profiting from hotels while they were party to government contracts.

Commissioner Maurice Herauf issued a ruling Monday evening — outlining that Grewal violated Section 15 of the Members Conflict of Interest Act, which deals with government contracts.

Grewal held an interest in two motels in Regina that were accepting social service clients — the Sunrise Motel and the Thriftlodge Motel.

Section 15 of the act specifies that “no member shall participate in a government contract,” unless specifically provided for in the act itself.

According to Herauf’s report, Grewal has been involved in the restaurant and hotel business for around 25 years and has never held any role with the Ministry of Social Services.

Grewal’s involvement in the hotel was first highlighted by the Saskatchewan NDP as they served in opposition.

Beginning in November 2023, the party claimed that the Sunrise Motel was overcharging customers who were on social assistance. Grewal’s connection to the motel was established later.

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The Sask. Party has vehemently defended the use of establishments like the Sunrise and Thriftlodge, saying that they provide essential housing to certain vulnerable residents and that the appearance of higher room rates were due to the ministry not paying damage deposits on room rentals.

Payments to the Sunrise Motel rose considerably following Grewal’s election to the legislature.

In 2018-19, the province spent just $282 to place clients at the motel, compared to $220,474 in 2022-23.

The same goes for the Thriftlodge Motel. The province spent $46,679 in 2021-22, but between April 2023 to September 2024, that expense had jumped to $139,478.

The allegations eventually led current NDP candidate Meara Conway to request an opinion from the COIC regarding Grewal’s involvement in the establishments and their billing practices with social service recipients.

In the report, Herauf confirms Grewal had breached Section 15 of the act by participating in government contracts in both establishments during the period of March 15 to July 17, 2024.

He notes that Grewal largely complied with legislation in the case of the Sunrise Motel — by directing the business to stop accepting new social services clients. He made no effort to divest from the Thriftlodge Motel, however.

“While I accept that taking such steps would be difficult (if not impossible) given Mr. Grewal is not involved in the operations of the Thriftlodge Motel, it was thus incumbent on Mr. Grewal to divest himself in that motel. He did not,” the ruling read.

Elected in 2020, Grewal announced prior to the 2024 election campaign that he would not be seeking a second term as an MLA.

Given that Grewal is no longer a member of the legislative assembly, Herauf chose to leave the matter of appropriate penalty to the legislative assembly as outlined in the act.

In a response to CTV News, the Saskatchewan Party said it accepted the COIC's ruling.

"Mr. Grewal is now a private citizen and is not running again," the response read. "Earlier this year, the procurement practices were changed to ensure the process for hotel usage considers fair value, availability and transparency."